The UIF team is pleased to announce that, as of February 24, 2025, the UIF program is moving to a new home at the DesignLab at the University of Twente in the Netherlands. Looking back The UIF program was created in 2012 as part of the National Center for Engineering Pathways to Innovation (Epicenter), a […]
Applications are live for the University Innovation Fellows program training cycle! The deadline is April 12, 2021.
Finding happiness in a constantly changing job market by Mae WhiteUniversity Innovation Fellow, IE University This article was published in Change Forward, an annual publication from our program that features work by Fellows and their Faculty Champions. A year ago, I came to my mom half in tears feeling defeated. I complained to her that […]
Why we held a paid changemaking workshop to empower student leaders by Ryan Chapman, Joey Gruber, Marissa Morales and Lavanya UppalaUniversity Innovation Fellows, University of Nebraska at Omaha This article was published in Change Forward, an annual publication from our program that features work by Fellows and their Faculty Champions. While students learn the skills […]
22 educators from 15 higher education institutions from around the world have been selected as candidates in the Faculty Innovation Fellows Program. In this two-year program, faculty and staff work to design unique projects that enhance the innovation ecosystems at their schools and help students gain vital real-world skills and mindsets. This program is run […]
How a small community of UIF mentors are disrupting higher education by Ilya Avdeev, Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering, University of Wisconsin-MilwaukeeMary Raber, Chair of the Department of Engineering Fundamentals, Michigan Technological UniversityMiriam Iliohan, Co-founder and Manager of DesignLab, University of TwenteNick Swayne, Founding Director of JMU X-Labs, James Madison UniversityFaculty Innovation Fellows program community […]
Asking students to redesign a childhood game makes the idea of inclusivity more tangible by LaRissa Lawrie, University Innovation FellowWichita State University ’19; University of Missouri, PhD student Inclusivity in the classroom is important in order to help us think about other points of view and perspectives. This informs student thinking and their actions, which […]
Congratulations to the 277 students from 73 higher education institutions in 15 countries who have been named University Innovation Fellows this year! The University Innovation Fellows program empowers students to become agents of change at their schools. Fellows work to ensure that all students gain the attitudes, skills and knowledge required to navigate a complex […]
Innovative Teaching Scholars Program Helps Thai Professors Unlock the Power of Student-Centric Learning by LaRissa Lawrie, University Innovation FellowWichita State University ’19; University of Missouri, PhD student Thai professors are reimagining university education. They are on a mission to empower their students to be creative and purposeful leaders in an innovation-based economy. National technological and […]
The UIF team worked with Stanford researcher Sedinam Worlanyo to understand the unique challenges, insights and needs of Black students in our program. In Fall 2019, prompted by dynamics we’d observed of majority white teams that had one Black teammate, we decided we needed to learn what was going on, in reality, on campus. We […]
Update: The 2023 application is now open. To learn more, visit universityinnovationfellows.org/hbcu-program or email Catherine Randle at catherine@universityinnovation.org. In February 2021, the University Innovation Fellows (UIF) program received a generous donation to fund the participation of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). Over the next three years, students and educators at 60 HBCUs will have […]
How can a highly experiential workshop be redesigned for a digital environment? How can a culture of empathy and experimentation be created in a community that’s distributed around the world? And how can we be effective teachers when we can’t be in the same room as our learners? Our team grappled with these and many other […]
198 students from 45 higher education institutions in 14 countries have been named University Innovation Fellows. The University Innovation Fellows program empowers students to become agents of change at their schools. Fellows work to ensure that all students gain the attitudes, skills and knowledge required to navigate a complex world and build the future. These […]
How our team designed an engaging online meetup for our community
by Sedinam WorlanyoOriginally posted on Medium Fight or flight. This theory first described by Walter Bradford Cannon sheds light on a physiological reaction that occurs “in response to a perceived harmful event, attack, or threat to survival.” Your body chooses to flee in a crisis or to stay and fight. When the coronavirus pandemic hit, […]
The UIF Regional Meetup at Vasireddy Venkatadri Institute of Technology (VVIT), held January 30-February 2, 2020, brought together Fellows from around the country for three days of design challenges, activities and speakers. By the VVIT UIF team What do you get when you bring together 60 Fellows from across India for three days of design […]
“We believe students can change the world” – The story of how they actually did at the Alps Meetup at FH Salzburg. By Cosima Decho & Julia Brunhuber, University Innovation Fellows, Salzburg University of Applied Sciences “Young people should be at the forefront of global change and innovation. Empowered, they can be key agents for […]
Applications are live for the University Innovation Fellows program Fall 2020 training cycle! The deadline is April 13, 2020.
Fellow Shivanika Shah interviewed Fellows and faculty at Madanapalle Institute of Technology and Science to better understand the impact of the University Innovation Fellows program at their school. By Shivanika Shah, Fellow, JSS Academy of Technical Education, Noida The journey of the University Innovation Fellows in Andhra Pradesh, India was ignited by 6 inspiring students […]
360 students from 90 higher education institutions in 13 countries have been named University Innovation Fellows. The University Innovation Fellows program empowers students to become agents of change at their schools. Fellows work to ensure that all students gain the attitudes, skills and knowledge required to navigate a complex world and build the future. These […]
A few Fellows have started to reach beyond the walls of the university to involve external partners and create resources in the surrounding community. This story is an excerpt from Designing for Change. Yaser Alkayale’s family moved to Canada from Syria in 2006 in search of better educational opportunities. In 2014, Yaser enrolled in Dalhousie University […]
By Titus Venverloo, Fellow, University of Twente From August 11 to 20, 2019, the University of Twente Innovation Fellows hosted their regional meetup in the Netherlands. With 31 students from over 15 countries joining the program, the stage was set for an amazing nine days full of design thinking, leadership, innovation and entrepreneurship, as well […]
Fellows collaborate with faculty and administrators to redesign and create courses at their schools. This story is an excerpt from Designing for Change. Kathryn Christopher found herself in a unique position at Grand Valley State University. She had completed a bachelor’s degree in product design and manufacturing engineering and was one year into her master’s degree […]
Quite a few Fellows have found or created positions to do their innovation work in their university. This story is an excerpt from Designing for Change. When La Salle Fellow Onesimus Morrison was a sophomore, he attended a seminar on innovation and entrepreneurship taught by Professor Steve Melick, director of the La Salle Center for Entrepreneurship. […]
Fellows often use start-ups as a way to involve other students in innovation and entrepreneurship. This story is an excerpt from Designing for Change. When Fellow David Shull arrived at Michigan Tech in 2010 as a computer software engineering major, he dreamed of working for Apple. However, he discovered that his school’s connection to Apple was […]
A number of Fellows start student clubs and organizations as a vehicle to transform learning at their schools. This story is an excerpt from Designing for Change. In 2016, Vanessa Ganaden, a business major from Cal State Fullerton, discovered an interesting club at her school that connected engineering and business students. At the time, she […]
University Innovation Fellows organized LOOP, the first-ever Latin American Innovation Week and the UIF Latin American Meetup in 2018. by Leticia Britos Cavagnaro There is learning about the world, and then there is immersing yourself in the world, and learning as you figure out how you can make an impact. Often times we think that […]
15 Fellows joined UIF co-directors Humera Fasihuddin and Leticia Britos Cavagnaro for SXSW in Austin, TX, in March 2019. They spent several days together learning from speakers, engaging participants, and connecting with one another. Below are a few of their reflections on the experience. A Scoot Through SXSW By Jessica Aldrich, Wichita State University After […]
Transforming higher education into a tool for social innovation was the theme of the Ashoka U Exchange conference. Five Fellows and UIF program co-directors Leticia Britos Cavagnaro and Humera Fasihuddin, held activities and attended sessions at the February 2019 event in San Diego, CA. Below are the Fellows’ reflections on the experience: All of us […]
75 members of the UIF community + an expanding innovation destination + beautiful sand and sun for miles = Eastern Hemisphere Meetup in the United Arab Emirates. Check out the materials and other resources from the event. Picture it: a place where you can go sand dune surfing, design a new innovation strategy for your […]
